Use of Military at Border Called ‘Absurd’ : Navy Secretary Against Using Armed Forces in Drug War

Blasting legislation that would require the military to block the U.S. border as “absurd” and “childish,” Navy Secretary John F. Lehman Jr. said this week that he strongly opposes using the armed forces to make arrests or lead the nation in a war against drugs.

“That is what always has made the United States very different from any police state,” Lehman told The Times in an interview. “We never should cede police powers to the military. For the expedient issue of the day it is easy to rationalize it away, but it is a fundamental threshold that should never be crossed.”

Lehman, 44, said the military’s readiness mission would suffer if troops suddenly neglected their warfare training operations to mount a blockade across the 1,700-mile border.

Not the Military’s Job

“That’s not what the military is for,” Lehman said. “Military readiness has been hard won these last five years. The Navy and all of the services were basket cases in 1979, 1980, and we could not get the job done. Morale was rotten because nobody believed they could do what they were supposed to be doing. Everybody believed they were going to lose if the fighting started. It’s taken us five years and a lot of money to restore that.”

In a relaxed, 45-minute interview outside his sea cabin at North Island Naval Air Station on Thursday, the Navy secretary also said he sees no contradiction between the Navy permitting Ensign Napoleon McCallum to play professional football for the Los Angeles Raiders and the Marine Corps’ decision last week to turn down a transfer that would have allowed Lt. Eddie Meyers a chance to join the Atlanta Falcons.

Clad in the green aviation jump suit and black boots he wore while piloting a UH-1 Navy helicopter over San Diego Bay, Lehman attacked proposed legislation requiring the military to block any unauthorized ships or aircraft from crossing the nation’s border or entering any of its ports.

Passed by the House

The measure, passed by the House on a 237-177 vote, would vastly expand the use of the military in the Administration’s “war on drugs.” It directs the President to deploy the armed services to halt all narcotics traffic within 45 days by utilizing troops and equipment to locate, pursue and seize ships and aircraft, and arrest their crews.

Last week, the Senate passed a version that does not call for such extensive use of the military. A House-Senate conference committee is working to resolve the differences.

Lehman said the Navy is eager to lend assistance to the nation’s drug enforcement effort, but only as a part of its ongoing operations. He emphasized that the Navy has flown 10,000 hours in drug interdiction flights this year.

On a helicopter flight to North Island Thursday, Lehman grew excited when he learned that his co-pilot, Cmdr. William M. Calhoun, served as air boss of the amphibious assault ship Peleliu, where McCallum, the Raiders’ running back, is assigned in Long Beach. Lehman asked Calhoun how McCallum was doing.

Lots of Support

“His schedule is a real one,” Calhoun told Lehman. “He works like the rest of us. He’s a very nice man. He’s got a lot of support. We all felt really bad when he fumbled in that first game.”

During the interview, Lehman insisted that McCallum will get no special treatment from the Navy. He added that McCallum is being allowed to moonlight like any other sailor, provided his work does not pose a conflict of interest or interferes with his duty assignment.

Lehman said he applied the same set of criteria in judging Meyers’ case, but that his commanding officer at Camp Pendleton ruled that transferring Meyers to Atlanta was not in the best interest of the Marine Corps.

Lehman noted that McCallum will be required to attend naval supply school in January. And if his assignment interferes with playing in the NFL playoffs?

“If he has accumulated leave for the Super Bowl, maybe he can do that. But if it interferes with his course, maybe he can’t. We’re not giving him carte blanche. We’re certainly not going to throw any obstacles in his course just to show we’re being tough on him.”